New Discoveries
by Blurasxbery
Summary: Ai has never really known much about Yu, even after spending one year of time with him. The boy is surprisingly secretive about his personal life, not even telling his friends about the town he's from. The idea comes up in Ai's head, and she follows him home one day; only to have her outlook revised. While Yu will continue to search for fossils, Ai will uncover something much more.
1. Chapter 1

It was a beautiful day in Animal Village. If one looked up, they could see how well the white clouds stood out in contrast to the blue background, making it a perfect sky. The sun provided more than enough light to reflect just how pretty everything in their town was. The plants and crops glowed with a youthful appeal to them, and the water droplets from the last storm slid off with ease.

Ai stretched her arms high above her head. She moved around more to get rid of any knots that had formed while she slept, and then stood to look at the scene before her. The rain last night had been _heavy,_ and she wasn't just using that term lightly. She'd been walking out in the square when it started, and she just had barely enough time to rush back to her house before she could be completely soaked. But even then, the water had gotten through her clothes and she had to wash them thoroughly before going to bed.

 _It's hard to believe that such an intense pelting mellowed out to this extent..._ She thought, bewildered by how calm everything seemed now. _Well, I'm not about to complain. This change is welcome!_ She smiled, before setting out to the square.

It was a Saturday, so she didn't have anything to do for Tom Nook - and it was just her luck too. She enjoyed her job, but the amount the packages weighed made it hard to ride her bicycle sometimes.

When Ai arrived at her destination, the first thing she did was go to the bulletin board at the front of Town Hall. It was there that newspapers and announcements would be posted up for everyone to see, and she wanted to make sure she didn't miss anything.

However, she sighed when all she found was the usual stuff - help wanted ads, small events that she wasn't particularly interested in, and the mayor continuing to beg for votes from his citizens. _The festival isn't even for another couple months..._

Deciding that there was nothing more to be seen, she headed toward the Able Sister's store. She'd heard they had a new pattern for sale - courtesy of Sally's prowess. She smiled at the thought of her friend. The last time she'd seen her was a couple days ago, proving how even though the elephant had moved to another town, she and Ai were still able to keep in touch.

Going inside the store greeted her to the same warm interior, their shelves stacked with new clothes from various cities. The thing that caught her attention though, was the pattern that stood at the front of everything else. It came in various styles; as a shirt, dress, or even pants.

"Wow! This must be Sally's new design." Ai exclaimed.

"Yes, aren't they beautiful?" Mabel, one of the sisters, walked up to her. "They just came in this week. That girl never ceases to amaze me with all of her new ideas!"

The pattern had a green and pink colour scheme, fitting the current spring season. Pink cherry blossom flowers inched up from the bottom that seemed to wrap the green cloth around like a vine.

"And the special part about this design, is that the flowers are hand stitched!" Mabel gestured toward the bundle, very elated to be talking about it.

Ai nodded along with her, "You're right, Mabel. I think I'll get this pattern in a dress, and maybe a short roll of it to take home with me."

The hedgehog happily clapped her hands together and took the dress and cloth that Ai pointed to. The pigtailed girl followed her up to the cash register and paid for the items, thanking both sisters before walking out of the store.

 _First purchase of the day,_ Ai thought, reaching for the dress from her bag to take a look at it. "Eeee! I'll wear it as soon as I get home!"

She began making her way back, but not before hearing a sudden noise from behind her. She paused, wondering what it was. _It sounds like... digging?_

As soon as those words entered her mind, she knew who it was. Yu was probably out in the forest with his buddy Albert again, searching for more of those fossils he kept talking about. She would've thought he'd gotten more than enough from the cave, but it seemed like he still wasn't done with his hunt for more.

 _Oh well, I might as well see what he's doing. He hasn't been in the village very much lately._ She went behind the store and into the path that lead to the forest, inching around puddles from yesterday's shower. The forest was devoid of people, which made finding Yu a lot easier.

The boy had his shovel out, a rather sizeable hole at the edge of his feet. Several little fossils and trinkets he'd found were gathered in a large plastic bucket.

Ai had to scoot around the many other holes he had made before reaching him, "Hi, haven't seen you in a while."

"Woah, Ai!" Yu stopped digging, looking up to face her. "Wasn't expecting to see you here either." He had on a caveman costume, topped with his dinosaur skull hat. It was a favourite of his that he took to any time he went digging.

She asked, "What are you doing?"

"Looking for fossils, of course!"

 _Figures,_ Ai rolled her eyes.

"I still haven't hit that jackpot yet, but someday I will! It'll be just as big as that dinosaur you found in the cave!" He yelled, going back to digging.

"I'm pretty sure we all found that together though," She commented, before looking around them. "-Albert isn't with you?"

Yu took the tiniest pause, "A-Ah, he's busy today. Said he had something to do."

"Oh," Ai hummed, not noticing the look of nervousness that he was trying to hide. "Isn't it tiring to dig out here all by yourself?"

"Yeah, but I do it because it's fun. If I find something rare, I wanna rub it in his face and make him jealous!" He said, before bending over to pick something up. "Another bug fossil."

She watched him as he sighed and threw it in the bucket. _If he wants to find something rare, why does he keep digging in the same places?_ "You know, you could look in some other areas besides this one. The only things you've been finding here are normal fossils, right?"

"Then do you know any other places?"

"Hmm..." She put her hand to her chin, "I don't, but Bouquet might. She's probably got more then just that cave that nearly collapsed on us."

"We should go and ask her then!" Yu climbed out of the hole he'd digged up, hauling the shovel above his shoulder. "Ai, come with me!"

"But what about the bucket?" She asked, looking down at the container that overflowed with fossils.

"We'll just come back and get it later!" He tugged on her hand, "Pleeaase, you're the only one who knows where Bouquet lives!"

"Fine, fine, just stop pulling!"

He let go of her hand and she dusted it to get rid of some dirt that had rubbed off on her. "Come on, let's go."

He followed her out of the forest and back on the Main Street, where all of the shops were. It was of her knowledge that the path to the right lead to the neighborhood, which was where Bouquet lived.

Ai looked over to Yu, who, despite how tired and worn out his body looked, seemed excited at the prospect of looking for more fossils. _Does he ever run out of energy?_ Truth be told, she hadn't planned on running into the hyperactive boy while on her morning stroll. She'd hoped to go shopping for clothes and food, before perhaps heading back to do her chores. _Still, I haven't hanged out with my friends since Sally came by. Maybe it'll be fun..._

"Hey Ai, what places do you think Bouquet would have in mind?"

"Huh?" She was stunned out of her stupor, flinching at the sudden question. "Um, maybe a forest, or another cave. Or maybe even a town we've never been to before."

"A different town?" Yu asked to seemingly nobody. He went silent after that, causing Ai to blink questioningly.

Bouquet lived near the center of the neighborhood, where the gardens were the prettiest. The many different colorful flowers stood on the ground in an organized fashion, complementing the cutesy design the feline chose to go with for her house. There was no way Ai could ever forget the first place she had delivered to.

The two stepped onto the front porch and rang the doorbell. Yu had to hold himself back from smashing the door down, much to Ai's chagrin.

"Coming!~" A voice could be heard from the other side. The door opened to reveal Bouquet, wearing a dress that was patterned with one of Sally's designs. "Ai!" She beamed upon seeing her friend, and looked over beside her. "And Yu? What brings the both of you here?"

"Well, Yu wanted to-"

"Do you know any good places to look for fossils?!" The boy interrupted, screaming into Bouquet's face. He was oblivious to the glare Ai sent his way.

"Eh?" The cat was caught off guard. She noticed the shovel Yu was clutching onto, and blanched. "Don't tell me..."

"I want another place just like the cave, with lots of ammonite fossils. I've only been able to find really basic stuff lately, but I want, no, _need_ some better finds!"

Bouquet frowned on instinct, slightly puzzled by his desperation. "W-Well, I don't know if it'll be as good as the cave, but there is a place that I know of."

"Really?!" Yu latched onto the cat's shoulders, "Where?! Where is it?!"

"I-It's in a d-different town! Stop shaking me!" She pulled away from him and rubbed her shoulders. "The town is called Boondox. I've heard about their large dirt supply, so maybe there's some good fossils to be found there."

"Boondox? Like the village filled with people who only eat grilled cheese sandwiches made of dirt?" Ai questioned. She imagined how that would taste and cringed, _doesn't seem too good..._

"Yep! Go look there and tell me what you find, 'kay?" She patted Yu's back, before going inside and closing the door.

Ai crossed her arms, "Bouquet, she doesn't even want to touch dirt... Yu?" She turned to face the boy, who had gone silent upon hearing Bouquet's suggestion.

"Well that was useless!" He huffed, lips pouted in a childish way. "That scaliwag, what happened to her helpfulness from last year?"

"Huh?" She tilted her head, having not expected him to say that. Wasn't it him who was raving on about going to any areas to dig? _Then again, I was the one who made the proposal._ "Yu, I think you should go to Boondox. They might have some fossils there that are of more value than the ones back in the forest."

Yu looked at her, "...Yeah, I think I'll go there right now. Thanks for coming along with me, Ai." He smiled, before hopping off the steps and back on the path.

"Wait, don't you want any help?" She called after him.

"Nah, if I need any help I'll just ask Albert!" He yelled back.

She watched him walk away, hunched shoulders and dragging his shovel across the ground. _Is it just me, or does he seem a little dejected?_

Perhaps he had already searched in Boondox. It was rather close to Animal Village, and was well known for it's lack of money and resources. The only thing the town was abundant in was dirt, which they used for practically everything, including food. She'd have thought that they were hiding some valuable stuff underneath all the soil, but if the town was still poor than maybe not.

But then, why did Yu say he was going to Boondox? _Could it be that... he lives there?_

Ai had never really thought of where the other human lived, always taking his word for it when he said "another town." On top of that, every single one of their friends all lived in Animal Village, except for him. It was strange that she'd only wonder about it now, but once the thought had planted itself in her mind, it wouldn't let go.

 _If he lives in Boondox, then it must mean he's poor..._ That statement gave her a new perspective. She suddenly felt sadder for him, looking on at his retreating form with pity in her eyes. She felt a surge of determination, _Alright, I know what I have to do now._

 _I'll go follow him!_

A.N.

Yayy an Ai x Yu story. There aren't very many of these, and I got a sudden craving for the pairing so I decided to make my own story. I'm not that good at writing but I hope it's still readable!

Reviews are very much appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

Following him had been easy enough.

Despite not knowing how to get to the next town over; with Yu's lackadaisical steps, she was able to tail him without being noticed. There were several instances where she had to slow down her pace because the other wasn't walking fast enough, and the uneven travelling pattern was starting to grate on her nerves. Still, she persisted, wanting to find out where Yu truly lived.

She couldn't believe she hadn't thought about it sooner. She had been to all of her other friend's houses - Bouquet's cute modern home, Sally's old and new home, and even Albert's home. Yet she still didn't know about Yu. Trying to picture a possible place caused her to draw up a complete blank, so the fact that Boondox might've been where he lived actually made some sense. _I can't jump to conclusions though. That might not be where he lives..._

Looking up, she could see him approaching the edges of Animal Village. She wanted to dart forward ahead of him and see what the town looked like, but didn't want to give herself away. Instead, she resigned to just slowly following him until they reached the entrance.

Most towns in the vicinity would have a banner or something to indicate that they had reached their destination, but all she could see was a sign with 'Boondox' messily tacked on with black paint, some of it chipped off from age. There was a crudely drawn stick figure underneath that had its arm raised, as if to offer a warm greeting to anyone who happened to be passing by. _At least they made an attempt to seem welcoming, right?_ She was trying her best, but even then her optimistic thoughts weren't doing much to quell her concern.

Ai was knocked out of her focus on the sign when Yu continued his walk into the town. She ran after him, only to remember that she wasn't supposed to do that. Resorting to the pace she had from before, she took the time to look around the area. Everything seemed unfamiliar to her - the path she walked along was covered in dirt, and not a single patch of grass was to be found. The buildings hardly looked anything like the ones in Animal Village, being made of brick-shaped stones and dried dirt.

There was one place, however, that bared some resemblance to her home. Across from the path was a bigger area where most of the villagers were gathered, and they stood in front of a building that looked like a poor reimagining of the town hall. The building was made out of actual bricks this time, but the roof and surrounding décor looked like it could collapse on them at any minute. She flinched when she noticed one of the roof tiles shift out of place, and whipped her head away to avoid witnessing a potential disaster.

Up ahead, Yu went a sharp right turn into a neighborhood, which she presumed was their housing unit and where he probably lived. It didn't seem like he'd caught onto the fact that Ai was tailing him yet, so she crept closer and hid behind a nearby wooden pole. _I really hope this isn't where he lives. There's so much more dirt and mud in this area, and this is supposed to be where people sleep!_ She watched him go deeper into the path, and sighed in relief when she saw how much cleaner the inner parts of the neighborhood were. _Still not by much, but it's an improvement at least._

She kept observing and following him closely, not taking her eyes off of him for even a second. Some of the other villagers gave her puzzled glances, but she was so focused on Yu that she didn't even notice. She watched in anticipation for him to stop at a house - _his_ house - because she just couldn't wait any longer to see it.

 _Ooh, the suspense is killing me! Just stop already-!_

Her train of thought was interrupted as Yu did exactly what she'd wished for him to do. He paused in front of a building, and after pulling a key from his pocket, unlocked the door and went inside.

Ai came out from her hiding place and onto the path leading to the house. She kept her eyes trained on the ground the entire time, not quite ready to face the inevitable. For over a year, she hadn't known a thing about where he lived or what he did away from the village. Would today really be when she found out?

She put her hand over her forehead and peeked out from underneath. Upon seeing it, she dropped her hand in shock.

The house was in _terrible_ shape. It was made of the same material as everything else was, but the walls looked more worn out than anything she had seen so far. There were blank beds of soil at the front, which were seemingly meant for planting flowers. She tentatively placed her foot on it, _e_ _ven if he did want to grow some flowers, he wouldn't be able to in this soil. It's way too dry._ The rain that poured itself on Animal Village yesterday apparently hadn't affected Boondox.

There was a fence surrounding the house that was smeared with dirt and crushed in some places. If one looked closer, they could see that the fence's color was formerly white. _What in the world happened for this fence to be stained this much?_ She wanted to touch it, but refrained from doing so as she was afraid it would topple over. She didn't want to ruin what resemblance of grace this house had left.

Ai stepped back to observe it some more. The building at least had windows, but they were sealed up with wooden boards and devoid of glass. She could only imagine how dark it was in there, unless it had more windows that were uncovered; or electricity. She sincerely doubted but hoped it was the latter.

Some spots in the wall felt flimsy and weak when Ai touched them, but weren't visible at a first glance due to the dried dirt that filled them in. _Looks like Yu or maybe someone else took the initiative to spruce it up. It still needs a lot more maintenance though..._ A piece of dirt from the roof fell on top of her head, _Like, A LOT a lot more. This house is practically falling apart! I can't believe he comes home to this everyday!_

She paused at the realization. For a year, and probably even longer before she moved here, he'd been staying in a place that seemed more like a junkyard than a house. So many questions ran through her mind; _how long has he been living like this? Does he live with anyone else? Has anyone helped him at all?_ Judging from the rest of the village that was just as much in ruins as his house, the last question was self-explanatory. No one had come to help this town.

Ai rested her head on the wall in an attempt to calm down. It was dirty, but the cool mud helped to soothe her nerves. After taking a few deep breaths, she lifted herself off from the wall and clenched her fists. Now that she'd collected her thoughts, it was time to-

The door behind her creaked open.

Ai tried not to look back as she darted behind the wooden pole she'd just come from. She returned back to her secretive stance, making herself as small as possible before peeking back out again. She sighed when it looked like Yu hadn't noticed her, _t_ _hat was extremely close!_ She didn't like hiding from him, but she wasn't sure if she was prepared to confront him about it yet. She'd have to know the full situation first before asking.

Yu was still in the same costume, but his shovel was gone. In its place was a rather sizeable pull-along wheel wagon that contained-

 _Fossils?_ She craned her neck out some more to make sure she wasn't seeing things, _those are definitely fossils. But why is he carrying them out with him? Weren't they for his collection? And come to think of it, he left the other bucket back in the forest..._ She looked back for a second, almost acting as if she could see the forest she'd found him in at the beginning of the day. She made a mental note to bring it back to him later.

The boy came towards the direction he'd come in from, which was out of the neighborhood; causing Ai to shift around the pole so he couldn't see her. He was struggling to pull the wagon across the dirt road with him, which must've been at least twice his weight. She had no idea where he could be taking it, but that was exactly the reason why she was doing this in the first place. To find out more about Yu's life and what he did when he was away from her village. _I already know that he lives in Boondox, so might as well dig more!_

She kept following him, hiding behind structures and buildings just like she had done when tailing him to his house. She was _very_ tempted to jump out and help him when she saw just how much he struggled with the wagon, but refrained from doing so. She managed to suppress the urge by looking around her some more. Some villagers were lounging around just outside the neighborhood, sitting on some makeshift stone chairs or even just the ground. A fair bit of them didn't have clothes, which she realized were probably a luxury that most couldn't afford.

Yu made his way to the square. The town hall from earlier was still on the verge of toppling over, except this time it was in even worse shape with a huge chunk of the roof that had fallen off resting on top of an empty bed of soil. She could clearly see the gaping hole it left behind, and wondered how anyone could even stand to work in there without fearing the worst.

There was no one loitering around the building anymore, much to Ai's relief. However, Yu still had the courage to open its door and step inside.

 _Wha- what is he planning on doing in there? Doesn't he know how dangerous it is?!_ She was, quite frankly, very concerned for his safety. It reminded her of their time at the cave, when Yu had jumped at the rocks in an attempt to get to a fossil and the cave had started collapsing in on itself. To this day, she still didn't know if it had really been caused by him or not - but there was a good chance that it had been, and she was afraid he would do the same thing with the town hall.

She wanted to see what was going on in there - but unfortunately there was nothing obscuring the windows to protect her from sight, and she was reluctant to go in with him, so she stood outside behind her tree and waited.

It took a minute, but Yu very quickly exited the building. He was still pulling the wagon filled with fossils around, but in his other hand he was also hauling along a cardboard box.

Ai watched further, waiting for him to pull the lid off of the box. Pull it off was exactly what he did, and it opened to reveal...

Ah. The box itself was what he was using. There was a sign that she hadn't seen taped to one side of the box, and it read 'Special! Very rare fossils!' in big, bold and colourful letters to get the reader's attention. Underneath was a price tag slightly smaller than the other words that read, '1000 bells each'. He unfolded it so it looked more like a stand, propping it up by its legs and parking it on the side of the square. There was a chair that he had brought with him in the wagon, and he pulled that out to sit down on it.

 _I-Is he... selling his fossils?!_ Ai couldn't believe what she was seeing, _But he loves collecting those! Doesn't that mean he'd rather keep them for himself?_ She looked at the wagon again, and at the small fossils that she'd seen him dig up more then enough times. They were the exact ones that he'd complained about being too common in the forest. Realizing that this was probably his way of getting rid of them, she sighed and turned back to the stand. _I see, so he's just giving away the ones that he doesn't need. But is this really the best place to sell them? The people here don't seem to be particularly rich..._

But just then, someone did come up to the stand, going against everything Ai had initially thought. She blinked once, then twice, before checking out who the person with apparently enough money to buy something in Boondox was.

A rather tattered looking bear with enough dirt on him to build another mud house stood in front of the stand, asking Yu about the type of fossils he had on sale. One of them was in his hands as he looked it over, bringing it up to his face so he could get a close look.

Ai looked on worriedly, _Those are the same fossils he complained before about being too common... There's no way someone will fall for that, especially if they're looking at it that closely-_

Her train of thought was cut short as she saw the bear smile at Yu and hand him a sack of bells. He walked away with a small bag of fossils, satisfied that he had gotten so many "rare fossils" for such a bargain.

Her jaw nearly touched the ground, shocked at how easily the bear had been fooled. But just when she'd managed to close her mouth again, she turned back around to see a small line forming at the front of Yu's stand. All the potential customers ranged from big to small, short to tall. What she noticed, however, was that they were all apparently citizens of Boondox, having some degree of dirt splotched or splattered on them.

Ai stumbled back from the tree. By now, a huge line was forming that extended beyond the town square. She'd swear that everyone in the village was there, waiting in line to buy something they didn't actually want.

How were people falling for this? Why wouldn't they want to save their money to provide food and shelter for their families instead of handing it to someone who was tricking them?

Yu looked delighted to see so many customers who wanted to buy from him. He was trying his best to manage them, yelling out to not crowd so much. In the middle of it all, he happened to look over to the tree Ai was hiding behind.

The girl blanched, _I-I have to leave!_ She immediately got up and ran the opposite direction, no longer caring if Yu had seen her or not. All that mattered to her was getting away from the scene of crime.

As she was running the distance from the two villages, she wondered if following him had been such a good idea after all.


	3. Chapter 3

The boy made his way back inside the crumbling town hall, pulling along a wagon containing a large cardboard box. He came up to the front and set the box down on the desk, effectively blocking his view of the clerk. "Hey, I'm done using this. Can you store it back?"

"Sure, kid." The clerk said in a gruff voice, lifting the box to place it on the floor instead. "How'd it go this time around?"

"It went great. My wagon's completely empty now!" Yu proudly stated, pointing down to the red carriage. The clerk was a tad bit too short to see over the desk, but he'd take his word for it. "In fact, I had to turn away some people because I ran out..." He sighed. If only he had carried out more fossils.

"Well, that's business for you. Your supply's gotta meet the demand," The rabbit grunted. He folded up the cardboard box and stuffed it between two nearby cabinets, waving away the dust that came flying out.

Yu pouted at the man's obvious statement. He'd been doing this for nearly two years now, he knew how these things worked. Besides, it'd been several months since that many villagers had lined up for his sale. He couldn't be blamed for not being able to predict how much people would be interested. He internally resolved to bring twice the amount of fossils next time, no matter how much strain they would put on his arms.

 _I'm kind of running out though..._ Yu lamented. The batch he'd brought out today had been more than half of what he had stocked up. He supposed he'd have to dig up more later... _Wait, huh?_

Suddenly struck with the feeling that he was forgetting something, he backtracked to earlier that day. The long trek from Animal Village to Boondox (which he was used to, but after a long evening, wasn't the most ideal way of travel), visiting Bouquet's house, meeting Ai in the forest... _That's right, the forest! I left my bucket there, didn't I? And it was full of fossils too!_ He wanted to smack his forehead, _I can't believe I almost forgot about that!_

"Hey, you just gonna stand there, or can I help you with something else?"

Yu jolted out of his stupor, "Uh, no, sorry. Thanks Mr. Gaston!"

He murmured something in response, but Yu didn't notice as he ran out of the town hall, not being gentle with the door at all. It nearly swung off the hinges, eliciting a curse and loud footsteps from the clerk behind him. The boy increased his speed in fear of being chased after.

It was late at night by now, and the town was shrouded in darkness. Boondox, with its meager savings, could only afford one streetlamp, which flickered beside the town hall. A few moths hovered peacefully around it, movements becoming erratic as they were disturbed by Yu's ascent away from the square.

He ran along the path leading directly to the town's exit, speed unhindered by his wagon (he'd already parked it in the woods behind the hall, fairly sure it wouldn't be stolen with how tired everyone was). His shoes scraped across the ground, creating a little dirt cloud trail behind him. Some got in his eyes, but he simply rubbed it away and continued his dash.

Yu made it to the outskirts of Animal Village in no time, having been led the way by the village's lights that could be seen from Boondox in the distance. The whole settlement was considerably brighter than his home town, being richer and able to afford more street lights. The sky was also much more clear here, stars forming constellations that were barely visible in Boondox's dirt-caked environment.

Almost as if on auto-pilot, the boy made his way to the part of the forest he was in earlier, gaze fixed on the sky. If he looked closely, he could make out something resembling a heart near the half-crescent moon. There was also an hourglass, butterfly, and... a cloud? Yu's lips quirked up at the irony of it. _And I thought you couldn't see clouds at night._

In the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the Able Sisters' shop, letting him know he was approaching his destination. Making haste, he ran the rest of the way to the bucket's approximate location; somewhere near the entrance of the woods. Sure enough, there it was, sitting in front of the familiar dug-up holes he hadn't had the time to fill in again.

Yu walked around the holes and picked up the blue plastic bucket by its side handles, relief coursing through him when he discovered it wasn't as heavy as it looked. He spared a glance at the craters before him, shrugging their existence off as he started walking out. If Resetti hadn't said anything about them before, then surely he wouldn't mind Yu leaving them there for a while. However, he still took a moment to kick some of the dirt mounds back in their places, just in case.

As he made his way to the path again, he felt his stomach violently rumble. "Ah," He paused, having not even realized how hungry he was until now. Luckily, it was spring, meaning there were fruit trees _everywhere_.

The brunet made a detour from the path, singling out the nearest tree he could find. He set his bucket down underneath it and stretched his arms out, preparing himself for some more manual labour. Setting his hands on either side of the trunk, he repeatedly pushed hard on it. When nothing immediately fell, he doubled down on his strength, face scrunching up from the extra effort. _C'mon, why isn't anything dropping..._

After what felt like ages, Yu felt something hit the top of his hat. A surprised noise escaped him, and he looked down to see a pair of bright red cherries connected by the stem. A wide smile of victory split his face as he picked them up. They looked ripe and delicious.

He popped one in his mouth, spitting out the pit when he was done. It tasted _really_ sweet, even sweeter than some desserts he'd had the chance to try in the past. He licked his lips and threw the other cherry in his mouth, _I wonder why I haven't eaten these until now. They're so good!_

He threw the stem away and looked back up at the tree. He had to get more of them, not only because they tasted good, but also because he was still really hungry. Yu grabbed onto the trunk and shook as hard as he could for a good four minutes, ignoring the burning in his arms. He heard the telltale _thump_ of the cherries hitting the grass below every minute or so. At the end of it all, he saw three pairs and a single lying scattered around the tree.

Yu scooped them up and placed the pairs in his pocket, holding the single to snack on first. He felt a little annoyed at it not being a double, but he supposed it was better than nothing.

Taking more time to savour the fruit, the unique cherry flavour spreading across his tongue brought forth a peculiar memory. Last fall, he'd asked Ai why Sally had moved away, and she'd responded with something about a 'cherry pie'. It made him think the elephant had merely left for a village with more cherry trees than this one. He dipped his head in concurrence, _She's got her priorities in check, if you ask me._

Of course, he suspected it may've been more than that, but didn't pester further in favour of leaving Ai alone. But even after she had cheered up, he'd forgotten to ask her. It was only now on a late night in Animal Village, standing under a fruit tree with a bucket full of fossils, did he remember Ai's utterance of the strange phrase. _Maybe I'll ask one of them about it when I get the chance..._ Yu thought, nibbling on the stem. Cherry pie sounded pretty good.

* * *

Sally sat on her bed, sketchbook being illuminated by the tiny desk lamp beside her. She was flipping through the papers, trying to decide on which designs she wanted to be brought to life next.

Her most recent release was the green cherry-blossom themed dress, which she heard had been a hit with the villagers of Animal Village and Treehut — the town in which she currently resided. The success had been a great source of motivation for her, and she hoped her next release would reach the citizens of other towns as well. _Perhaps I'll create something spring-themed again. Catering to the seasons seems to do quite well._

She flipped to the latest page, which had a pair of red and blue plaid dresses drawn next to each other. They were cute, but she wasn't sure if the public would like them enough to purchase them. She sighed. It was times like these where she wished she could turn to her friends for an outside opinion.

 _But I will be able to soon, won't I?_ She turned to the calendar hanging across from her, gaze focusing on the circled date two weeks from then. It was nearing the one-year anniversary of Ai's arrival to Animal Village, and Sally wanted to celebrate by hosting a small get-together with their friends and any other villagers that wanted to come. She'd already sent out letters to Bouquet and Albert informing them of the plan and an ideal location. It was to be a potluck picnic, where the sole requirement for each attendee was to bring food for all of them to share. Hopefully, if it was nice and sunny out, they would be able to hold it outside.

The elephant had informed the recipients of the letters to keep it a secret from Ai, and in extension for Albert to inform Yu of the same thing. She felt bad for keeping another big thing from her best friend again, but this time she knew the pigtailed girl wouldn't mind. It was meant to be a surprise, after all.

 _I hope I'll hear from them soon,_ Sally thought, bringing a hand up to her face in anticipation. Bouquet, Yu, and Albert had to agree to it if she wanted this to work. But regardless, even if they couldn't have a get-together, she would still visit them in two weeks. When else would she be able to have another break?

Outside, something tapped against her bedside window. Sally looked over to see the beginnings of a rain shower. She frowned. This spring was shaping out to be a very rainy one... _OH! This gives me an idea for a design!_

Eagerly, she grabbed the pack of pencil crayons from her desk and began sketching out a dress. Internally thanking the weather for renewing her inspiration, she steeled herself for another long night beside the desk lamp.

* * *

A.N.

First of all, I just wanna apologize for this update being so overdue. Procrastination and mental health issues contributed to that orz  
This is more of a buffer chapter ('cause it's pretty short) just hinting at things that will come later. Since it's been a while, I gotta take some time to re plan this story a little. Thank you to anyone who waited, and I promise not to take as long for the next update!

P.S. Huge shout out to Mario123311 on DeviantArt for making fanart of this fic ( just take out all the "(" symbols ): http(:/(/fav.(me/dczcgdr  
Thank you so much! I really appreciate it :D


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